How Working from Home is Saving Companies Money

How Does Working From Home Save Companies Money August 21, 2020

Mary Kate Morrow

Writer

Introduction

How does working from home save companies money and make them more productive? Allowing employees to work remotely will increase employee satisfaction and create major cost savings for your business in the long term. By providing your workforce with the opportunity to work remotely, it offers a host of benefits which not only promote the business but also maintain the retention of your top employees.

Why You Should Let Employees Work from Home

Remote employees can make even a small business feel like a large global workplace corporation. Remote work offers many professional and personal benefits for both employees and managers including-

1. Less time spent commuting- Employee satisfaction takes a huge hit when employees have to go through a grueling daily commute. Additionally, time spent commuting could be much more effectively used on other business tasks. Without the need to commute, employees can have more flexible work hours instead of planning their days around traffic or public transportation times.

By decreasing or completely avoiding commuting, remote workers have a greater work life balance and increase your entire business's long term bottom line profitability. Cutting commuting provides huge cost savings for both the company and the individual employee.

2. Better work life balance- A hot topic in employee satisfaction discussions is about creating a work life balance that is long term and ideal. Employees work best when they are given the freedom to work when they feel the most productive.

Additionally, employee absenteeism will decrease when you allow your workers to have a flexible work schedule. Years ago if you needed to go to a doctor's appointment or important event, you'd have to schedule in commuting and potentially miss work. Now, employees can schedule their days around commitments instead of missing work part time or for the entire day.

3. Real estate savings- Employees working from a home office will decrease and potentially prevent real estate costs for employers. Office space is expensive especially in metropolitan areas like New York or Los Angeles.

Working remotely allows your business to access any employee in the global workplace so long as they are provided the appropriate tools. Instead of spending an eight hour day in your office, employees can create their own flexible work schedules from their home office.

4. Increased global workplace exposure- When you have employees working all over the world, you are given access to global workplace analytics that you normally would not have. Remote work can allow an employee to deliver global workplace analytics reports from across the globe to wherever your central office is located.

Studies show that remote employees provide a much larger talent pool to pick from, as you are not limited by picking candidates by their geographic locations. Additionally, a remote work place is more attractive to top talent employees.

How Remote Work Saves Companies Money

Almost 6 out of 10 employers say that cost savings are a major benefit of telecommuting. Additionally, studies show that almost 43% of full time American employees want to work remotely.

There are many cost savings available for companies who want to switch to part time or full time remote working. Thankfully, remote work is a shift that employees themselves are very much interested in. Cost savings of employees working from home include-

A decrease in the need for office space cleaning services.
Less money spent on real estate rent and utility bills.
Saving money
A potential tax break for companies with remote workers on the payroll.

Increased productivity will provide your business with higher profit margins. Studies show that remote workers are 200% more likely to work more than 40 hours a week than onsite employees.

Even for only half time remote employees, businesses save on average $11,000 per year. Not to mention that remote workers are more likely to have high employee satisfaction and are more likely to stay long term at a business. Higher rates of employee retention will decrease costs associated with onboarding new employees.

Remote employees have a better work life balance which translates into cost savings for employers. Employee absenteeism decreases significantly when allowing employees to work from home.

A slight illness is much less likely to stop productivity and spread if an employee works remotely than in an office space surrounded by coworkers.

Studies show that up to 78% of employees who call in sick are actually missing work because of personal issues or stress.

Not only does working remotely decrease stress levels while increasing employee satisfaction but it will ultimately save you some of the average of $1,800 that employers lose per employee per year due to unplanned absenteeism.

Conclusion

Years ago remote working was much less prevalent but as technological advancements occur and there is a change in employee satisfaction needs, remote working is increasing.
The time employees spend commuting can be more effectively used.
Remote workers have a much higher work life balance than their office worker counterparts.
Companies save money on real estate and are given a better global workplace exposure with remote employees.
Even with only half time remote employees, businesses save an average of $11,000 per year.
Employee absenteeism decreases significantly with remote work opportunities.
Innovative employers seek to understand the question how working from home save companies money.